As a Christian I hate other people claiming Christianity while believing false prophets— Christian nationalism for one.
A true Christian walks the walk of Christ. Accept everyone regardless of race, religion, sexuality... Help those in need, standup for what’s right. Share your wealth. Those were the dominate traits of Christ.
The path of Christ is walked by people of all religions just calling it something else.
Jesus threatened people with supernatural torture if they didnt obey what he claimed his father wanted, which was absolute submission. Jesus is one of the most malicious characters ever invented.
Excellent review of what we here, in Chile, experienced during the 80s and 80s, dear Guy. I was born and grew up during Pinochet's dictatorship. I remember well all the priests and nuns and communities that werer prosecuted, trapped and killed then. How they were attacked for their christian beliefs and for keeping the teachings of Jesus at the side of poor people, workers, normal laboring families. And the elites happily helped this happen, as they do today. Tomorrow, a fascist, ultra right pseudo nazi government built on lies, hate, racism and fake news is starting in Chile with Jose Kast. May God help us all. Especially those who were targeted during Pinochet's regime. Or the LGBTQI+ community, or pro Palestinian, Mapuche and environmental activists. And working class people. And women.
I lived in Chile from 1980-84 and married a Chilean professor and participated in protests against Pinochet. The hierarchy in the Church mostly colluded with the military. I think Liberation Theology is the best thing to reemerge from Christianity. Thank you for this well written article and graphics, Guy. May evil fail and goodness prevail always everywhere!
Those were hard years for us, Carol. And yes, the church hierarchy colluded with the military, as thaley continue doing with the fascist elites nowadays. It is (and was) horrifying, disgusting and sad. Luberation Theology is what remained nearest to the Gospels and teachi gs of Christ. It is revolting how the ruling classes use religion as a means to maintain the people oppressed and manageable, silencing their right and will to resist and oppose injustice.
Claudia, with due respect, I don't think your argument applies in this time of Trump, when his MAGA followers believe the same thing you believe, that Trump is fighting the rich and powerful in the form of the Deep State. To them, Trump is doing the work of Jesus. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Trump IS the rich and powerful, and must be fought agains with all the might and power you US citizens can muster. I pity those MAGA followers for letting themselves be so misled by pathological manipulators and liars.
Maybe you misunderstood me, Sam. I deeply regret how "religious" leaders are manipulating people into supporting the convicted criminal that disgraces your nation as acting POTUS. Presenting him to the public almost as God himself and the savior of all, using pseudo religious soeech and arguments, twisting religion to a point where the damage done to people who will follow blindly, is unforgivable. In my country, Chile, I was raised in a Catholic home. I saw the chirch and its authorities siding with evil and justufying it. Only those in the Liberation Teology line, stood up for us, and for those who suffered under Pinochet.
It boggles my mind that there are people, adults, with a brain inside their skulls, truly believing this, and working actively for the Armaggeddon. We are back in the Middle Ages, or even further back.
Thank you, Guy, for this great piece on Christian Liberation! So many have been kept in the dark for so long about the true redemptive and freeing power of Christ's teachings... Kept in the dark by those who oppressed and abused their labor for their own financial gain. Here's hoping more and more are waking up to the fact that Christ's liberating message has been hidden but it's still theirs for the taking.
Hello people—Guy is correct about Liberation Theology and what those teachings stood for— remember his Jesus’s exact words from “sermon on the mount.” Those were his precise words and teachings. If you know him in the spirit world, as many people do currently, he’s no different and preaches love for all the people. Taking care of the people was his mission, and no amount of biblical exegesis can explain it differently. He was a great prophet and is in the spirit world a liberation warrior still to this day teaching peace, love, generosity, courage, integrity, forgiveness, and compassion for others always. Hegeseth will be remembered by God in his own way, and it’s not up for us to judge others, as there is always “justice.” Killing others is very much against all spiritual law—period. Hegeseth will more than likely spend some time in his next Iives learning a better way. He may lose family member after family member through war. As there is always justice. It isn’t for us to say really, but all people who break spiritual law learn eventually. We should all remember to save ourselves hard times and wasted efforts to follow that spiritual law, rather than break it. Follow Jesus’s golden path of those virtues, and you shall be rewarded. Love thy neighbor.
When you pray to Jesus, you pray to a fellow human. That's fact. When you pray to God or Allah, you pray to God. That's also fact. People believe whatever they want, even though some beliefs are not supported by fact and some beliefs contradict fact. This is why you and MAGA believe the same thing.
Hello how do you know who I pray to? Jesus was and is an enlightened being, and there are many more. I am a person of light. I am definitely not MAGA. All people pray to God —ultimately— if they pray at all. These are simply the names people that refer to the most. But yes Islamic believers also pray to God— Allah the enlightened one— they also accept Jesus as a prophet. . Human beings made that separation— not God. God doesn’t care what religion or spirituality one belongs to. God does not care who we pray to as long as we respect his wishes and laws of spiritual beingness. That’s all.
Christianity didn’t get “captured” by empire centuries later. The empire embraced it and made it the official religion after Constantine the Great legalized it with the Edict of Milan, and later Theodosius I made it the state religion of the Roman Empire.
From that moment the church absorbed Roman hierarchy, authority, and imperial logic. Bishops mirrored imperial administrators, doctrine was enforced with state power, and dissent became heresy backed by law.
Christianity is the empire rebranded. It is no coincidence its symbolic seat of power sits in Rome. Christianity didn’t just get used by empire. It fused with it. The Christianity we know it, flourished inside Roman imperialism. Christianity is imperialism.
I think that was his point. Christianity is a good thing that was coopted. When people tried to go back to the real Christianity, they were bulldozed and silenced. Islam cannot be corrupted which is why it is so demonized. It doesn't just say what is wrong, it gives ways to fix it. Christianity came to correct the changes made by man in Judaism. Islam came to correct the changes made by man in Christianity. God said He will protect the Quran. There have been no changes to it since it came down.
Its not about any religion , the Romans would have weaponized Islam , Buddhism and any other religion if it provided a means to maintain power over the populous. Religions, like most everything that man creates, no matter the noble intent, someone will find a way to turn it into a weapon.
Good summary. Too bad it falls on too many deaf ears. Your comments about Christianity of course apply even to Trump's MAGA supporters, even though they agree with you using the same Biblical quotes. And in my view, they aren't even Christians, at least by how Jesus is quoted in the Scriptures. What a mess.
There is a lot of profound wisdom in religious texts, but there also a lot cruelty in these old texts. You don't have to belong to any faith, nor believe in Jesus to have compassion and empathy for others.
“The United States Supreme Court has ruled that Native Americans lost their land because Christians discovered it first.”
That’s not hyperbole. It’s essentially the logic of Johnson v. M’Intosh (1823).
In that decision, Chief Justice John Marshall ruled that European discovery gave the United States ultimate title to the land, reducing Indigenous nations to a right of occupancy rather than ownership.
Marshall didn’t invent the idea. He pulled it from the Doctrine of Discovery — a legal framework rooted in 15th-century papal bulls like Inter Caetera (1493), which authorized Christian monarchs to claim lands inhabited by non-Christians.
That doctrine was absorbed directly into U.S. law through what’s known as the Marshall Trilogy:
• Johnson v. M’Intosh (1823) — discovery gives the U.S. ultimate title
“Christians”. Show that quote or you are an atheist New World Order shill. Only satanists go out of their way to inject “Christian” into things simply so they can then shit on them.
You exposed yourself so readily… Clearly they trained you better than that.
Christopher, thanks, I wasn't aware of this. Here's a synopsis of the basics:
Johnson v. M'Intosh, 21 U.S. 543 (1823), is a landmark Supreme Court case establishing that Native American tribes did not hold full title to their land, but only a "right of occupancy." Consequently, private citizens could not purchase land directly from tribes; only the federal government could acquire it, based on the "discovery doctrine".
In 1773 and 1775, Thomas Johnson purchased land from the Illinois and Piankeshaw nations. Later, the U.S. government sold that same land to William M'Intosh. Johnson's heirs sued to claim the land, arguing their title was superior.
Ruling: Chief Justice John Marshall, writing for a unanimous Court, ruled that only the federal government held valid title to the land. The ruling upheld that European discovery (and subsequent American sovereignty) gave the U.S. government the exclusive right to extinguish Native American title, whether by treaty or conquest.
Jesus worshiped Yahweh, the character in the Torah who commands a genocide of Midianites and the enslavement of female virgins as war booty. The central theme of the gospels is that Yahweh is so angry at humanity that if his supposed innocent "son" Jesus isnt tortured and executed for the sins of other people that he will torture everyone. And the only way out of being tortured is believing this story isn't psychotic and it is true. Jesus preached that if people didn't believe him and obey him that they would be tortured; and promised people that if they did obey him they would be rewarded. He *commanded* people (because he thought he was rightful king of the earth) to give to the poor while simultaneously sanctifying slavery. It is a story fit for sycophants.
The bible will always cultivate people like Hegseth. It is filled with delusion and extraordinary cruelty. Christianity has enslaved way more people than it has ever liberated, and it will always be like that. Suggesting Christianity is about liberation is like suggesting Nazism is about anti-racism.
No, we interpret religion as a moral foundation for the purpose of living modern meaningful life. You are missing way too much education on Christianity to have any valuable commentary if u think Christians value the Old Testament equally or more than the New Testament. Try at least learning the simple story of the gospel and see if Jesus represents the right wing government oppressors in Roman Caesar or right wing religious oppressors in the Pharisees, or if he represents the poor & working class.
Christianity also cultivates people like Gustavo Gutierrez, MLK, Tommy Douglas (father of Canadian healthcare system), etc etc. White American settler colonialism using Christianity as a tool, the way Zionism uses Judaism as a tool, cultivates people like Hegseth
Who is "we"? My understanding of particular religions, such as Christianity, is based on reason and evidence.
The Old Testament is foundational to the New Testament. Without understanding it, a person cannot develop an empirically accurate understanding of the New Testament.
The "simple story of the gospel" is what I already outlined about the character Yahweh's demand for an innocent blood sacrifice to quench his psychotic wrath.
Jesus doesn't "represent" the "right" or the "poor and working class." You are erroneously projecting modern political ideology into a first century apocalyptic cult.
For every 1 "MLK" there are 1000 "Hegseths" that Christianity births. Not even close to worth it. "liberation theology" is functionally the attempt by socialists to use Christianity as a propaganda tool for political ideology that isn't strongly supported by the Bible.
ZIonism doesn't use Judaism as a tool, Judaism is using Zionism as a tool. Read Rabbi Kook's eulogy on Herlz. Judaism is foundationally a pseudo racial nationalistic genocidal slaver cult. The settlers terrorizing the West Bank are a lot more like Moses than the activists in Jewish Voice for Peace who are so intent on trying to protect the reputation of Judaism. Interpreting Judaism as a "social justice" religion is like interpreting Nazism as a "social justice" ideology. It's erroneous and unethical. Some religions deserve to be repudiated, and reformation is futile and misguided.
Christianity is ultimately an obstacle to the "liberation" of "the poor" and "working class." No religion that exults slavery will ever truly "liberate" "humanity."
Jax, aren't you proposing that we take from the Scriptures only what your interpretation says and that we disregard much of the text that comprises these documents?
Longer reply on your restack, but basically: Yea, pretty much, this is the heart of theology, discerning how to follow & apply scripture to modern life, which often involves prioritizing some aspects over others. Not much different from philosophy discussions & debates, we argue for the interpretation we think is best.
With all due honour young Guy Christensen [your last name means "Son of the Christ", a title meaning one who follows the true 1st century austere Bible Jesus the Christ in the John 3:1-21 way which He calls ALL mankind too], i seek not to offend you but rather to show you where you are in grave error. I'm past a half-century old, i'm Italian, first generation in Canada and i was a Catholic for about 30 years of my before i had a true John 3:1:21/Damascus road conversion about 20 years ago to become a true 1st century defined born again disciples of the authentic austere 1st century Jesus the Christ of the Scriptures.
It really saddens me how many spiritually fatally believe they can teach others how to comprehend the Scriptures, when they themselves are not truly saved yet, and when they are in rebellion to Jesus in His eyes by spreading quite dangerous heresies such as "Liberation Theology" and when if they read the New Testament in the correct 1st century John 3:1-21 / Acts 17 Berean exegesis, they would know that you have to be at minimum forty years old to teach others the New Testament as Jesus taught because it takes time to correctly comprehend His words in their historical context spiritually and how it applies to today. So as the true the Christ Jesus commands us elder disciples/ministers of the one and only true Gospel, i told you that to tell you all this;
When one studies the Scriptures correctly [exegesis] as i outline above, they **will** learn that the Christ Jesus was NOT a Socialist. Why? **because what He taught was voluntary acts of charity - to give with a cheerful hear [2Corinthian 9:7 and other parallel verse] - *rather than government-enforced redistribution of wealth.* His teachings emphasised one's own responsibility and the importance of individual choice in helping others, rather than a political or economic system.
Further and again;
According to correct 1st century John 3:1-21 qualified / Acts 17 Berean exegesis [**NOT eisegesis which you have perilously done or have dangerously adopted**], Liberation theology is dangerous heresy. Jesus warned many times how in our day, there would be a GREAT MYRIAD of false prophets and foul shepherds teaching all manner of innumerable doctrines of devil and damnable heresies - spiritual poison, and you are spreading one of them. Liberation theology arose in the 1960s by Latin Catholics of South America [thus Socialist areas]. Thus it's quite a dangerous heresy because it stresses social and political liberation **not prime focus on spiritual salvation** and so, the former [Liberation Theology] is in stark oppositional conflict to 1st century Jesus taught John 3:1-21 qualified/Acts 17 Berean exegetical discipleship, Liberation Theology heavily distorts the Gospel [Luke 13:1-5, 24:47, Mark 1:15, John 3:1-21, Galatians 1:7-9 and many parallel verses] by prioritising social justice over one's own sins and salvation.
Here's a link to further comprehend the grave seriousness of spreading such modern day heresies;
I implore you as the true 1st century Jesus the Christ commands - in the brotherly love as HE defines love which He is the only God of - ever so strongly reconsider what you are spreading here, for according to our Creator [God/Jesus], any who have been greatly bamboozled, beguiled, betrayed and bewitched by the father of lies/satan to believe they are approved by Jesus to teach the Scriptures and yet they are not truly John 3:1-21 qualified as is required Jesus teaches, then they are qualified for Matthew 24:11 and all parallel verses in the Old and New Covenant/Testament. I pray you receive this in humility if you truly seek truth no matter the cost, no matter how much it hurts, no matter where it leads, no matter the matter, because **ONLY God/Jesus*** is the eternal, absolute, most sublime, transcendent, omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, omni-iudex, omni-dimensional, omni-omni foundation and fountainhead of Truth, it's one of His names, it's what He is, Truth itself, the source of it. I pray it's His will you see this reply and truly heed what i have been commanded to tell you in His love by Him according to correct study/exegesis reading of the Scriptures.
It says at the end to ask if our systems fit into His word and that’s what I’ve done with the article, with you, and what Liberation Theology also did in Latin America.
There’s nothing wrong with recognizing the sin of oppressive systems and rallying against them. E.g. Exodus story.
I never said Jesus was a socialist but I believe he’d like it much more than he’d like billionaires, who are surely eternally damned. If you think saying the rich are oppressive and advocating for wealth redistribution makes him a socialist then it’s your words not mine.
He would tell the billionaires to give all their wealth to the poor in order to achieve eternal life. Don’t you agree?
"I never said Jesus was a socialist but I believe he’d like it much more than he’d like billionaires.......He would tell the billionaires to give all their wealth to the poor in order to achieve eternal life. Don’t you agree?"
Sadly, either you did not fully comprehend the article, or are not ready yet to fully comprehend it. I pray you do sooner than later for tomorrow is not promised and it's too late for us to change our minds after we take our last breath and face Him for judgment. Ezekiel 33.
What mental BS you write. Never trust anyone who cannot make an argument directly and concisely And who uses a Bible verse like that carried some authority And asks you to read some other link.
Many many men wrote the Bible and even more men decided which writings would be included in the Bible. Most of the Bible is not worth reading. I have read it. Most of the words attributed to Jesus are revolutionary and beautiful and true. Patriarchal religions in general are violent, hierarchical and emphasize conformity. It is not about worship, but about love.
No offence Carol, you're replies are much more feelings based than fact based, thus fully qualified for verses like Proverbs 1:7, 8:13, 12:15, 14:12, 15:12, 16:18, 17:15-16, 18:13, 28:26, Jeremieh 17:5-9, Matthew 10:40, Luke 10:16, Romans 1:18-32 etc.
No, "socialists" are typically atheists, and Jesus absolutely hated atheists. He felt that everyone who didnt worship and obey his master, the god of slavery and genocide, Yahweh, deserved to be tortured. You should read Numbers. It is important to know who you are praising. He doesnt deserve it.
Sigh.. more quite abhorrently contorted, distorted, twisted, warped, vainglorious dangerous eisegesis of the Holy Bible, not really much exegesis, the former brings self-induced extirpation, the latter true salvation. BTW, "Yahweh" is not the God of the Old Testament, see this;
Anyone who fantasizes about supernatural torture of people who don't do what they want hates people and absolutely doesn't "love everyone." The message to "love everyone" is irrational nonsense and in Jesus' case, his message to obey a psychopathic character, Yahweh, makes him a "teacher" deserving rebuke.
Sigh.. you people clearly don't even read the Old and New Testament, just snippets and then intellectually factually believe you're correct. Smh... Jesus hates evil and the evil-doer. Study the Scriptures in the correct 1st century John 3:1-21/Acts 17 Berean way [exegesis] He taught, not in an eisegesis way which you are clearly demonstrating which is great peril to call God/Jesus a liar since that is what the father of lies/satan teaches his spiritual offspring.
You sir are simply, & way too confidently, wrong. But that's ok different interpretations are not the end of the world, we don't scream about heresy for slight theological differences, we're civilized modern ppl not medieval peasants right?
The gospel is not about pure individual responsibility, Jesus was not an enlightenment philosopher pushing liberal individualism, nor a stoic philosopher focused on personal self control, he was a guardian of the poor and dispossessed here to reveal the character of God and how to see God in all His children. How we treat our poor, weak, ill, & tribalist "enemies", is how we truly view Jesus. Write all u want with bible references it doesn't mean anything if you aren't living Jesus' message. Love each other as he loved us, give away our earthly belongings, share amongst each other, washing feet, humbling ourselves, none of that is individualist or capitalist. Jesus would actually be a communist not a socialist because he would be for smaller decentralized communities that share and participate in communal reciprocal work to benefit each other. Socialism is the approach to political government that seeks to convert current capitalist states towards the goal of communism, in other words for us to live as monastic monks did, in sustainable loving community. The early anabaptists were a form of pre-communism identified by Engels.
The message of Jesus will spread more when more people realize his message is radical love to the point you love your enemy and pro-social community, not harsh individualist every man for himself capitalism as we have today. Right wing Christianity is doing more to kill the religion than any atheists or anti-Christian folks ever could.
Jax, great comment. Thanks. I only warn not to invoke the Capitalist/Socialist discussion as an either/or, which is silly and childish. A successful society must incorporate both sides of the dualism, using wisely-devised institutions. This dualism, is a fundamental feature of our brains, a result of biological evolution, which selected for survival of the species, not for understanding reality. Survival is not the understanding of reality.
Jesus threatened people with supernatural torture if they didnt obey the god he believed in Yahweh. He told his "tribalist enemies" that they were going to burn in a fire. Jesus is one of the most egomaniacal malicious characters in literature. He didn't "love" everyone. No one can. No one should. "Loving" your enemy, in any substantial way, is often foolish and immoral.
Oh, and feel free to give me your stuff and wash my feet. Jesus would not have been a communist. He thought he was a king. Although, admittedly, I imagine deep down inside, most communists dream to be kings.
Clearly not engaging in the discussion in good faith, what's the point of commenting? You think ur doin something or convincing anyone of anything? Besides that, almost sound like ur arguing in favour of sociopathy lol. Sorry you proudly identify with those Jesus condemned I guess? Most don't, most recognize instinctively that selflessness is morally better than selfishness. Regardless of its practicality. Ofc selfless ppl can be taken advantage of by selfish ppl, and this is a good point of theological discussion, on pacifism in the face of evil, where I am more sympathetic to self defense & defense of others/vulnerable. But loving enemies creates a chance to convert those enemies to friends, there's a reciprocal attitude where sometimes to end the conflict you need to be the one to put down ur weapons first, and the other usually follows ((Btw Jesus didn't threaten anyone he was just stating facts of the religious view according to existing scripture at the time & then synthesized thru his fulfillment of OT prophecies))
Thank you for making it quickly easy to discern you're who the true austere Jesus the Christ referred to in Proverbs 1:7 [the latter part], 8:13, 12:15, 14:12, 16:18, 17:15-16, 18:13, 28:26, Jeremieh 17:5-9, Matthew 7:1-6, 13, 21-23, 13:14-15, 15:7-9, 19:16-19, 24:11, Rev 3:15-16, 21:8, 22:15 plus all parallel verses. An abomination is the WORST thing anyone or anything can become to the true Jesus, it means one is a heartbeat away from the Lake of Fire. I pray you have a true road to Damascus/John 3:1-21/Luke 13:1-5, 24:47, Mark 1:15 etc conversion before it's too late, because tomorrow is not promised, and it's too late to change your mind after you die and end up in the Lake of Fire eternally.
I have been on a spiritual path most of my 69 years and have experienced many profound and miraculous events. Comprehending any religious or spiritual writings is not the point. Some are inspired, most are not. It is about who we evolve into and become. It is about inner peace and love and authenticity and integrity and equality. Humans can create hell or heaven on earth. The prayer by Jesus: "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." shows us the way. The will is love and goodness. The Totality, Consciousness, God/Goddess or whatever you call it loves all creation.
Carol, thank you for your words of wisdom, and I'm impressed at your young age. I'm discovering some of these now in my 80th year and wondering why it took so long.
People should make the effort to watch the quite well researched work based on correct 1st century John 3:1-21 qualified/Acts 17 Berean exegesis by the late Caryl Matrisciana [she was a Jesus follower, she had such a heart for God/Jesus] and you will learn, hopefully, why you're spreading old age occultism masquerading as new age systems of belief which is inherently doctrines of devils.
My father was a Presbyterian minister and a thinker and a man of integrity. I spent a lot of time in church and studied the Bible and other religions. He became a social activist because of Jesus. The Divine is Love. Hell is a human creation. We are currently body, mind and spirit. The body will pass away. The Divine is not a humanoid. It is omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient, everything. We are all part of that. The only thing that separates people from the Divine is their mind.
Discepolo, with due respect, you seem to be lost in your own head, a classic nerd. But maybe this is what you aspire to, though not with that label. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think you'll ever "get it." Maybe next lifetime, if there is one.
"Discepolo, with due respect, you seem to be lost in your own head, a classic nerd. But maybe this is what you aspire to, though not with that label. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think you'll ever "get it." Maybe next lifetime, if there is one."
I'm everything, but not in the same moment. If you want to know what I experience in moments, but only considering the topic at hand, I'm a Christian, Islamist, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, or other things that are harder to define in that they are the result of my own creativity. You might think of the latter as a "One-ist," or "Universer," or "Everything and All," etc. You get the idea. Would you call that a "materialist"?
Don't you have such moments at all? I'm sure Carol does. And I mean also those moments that are fleeting and discouraged. I try to focus on them an prolong their moment. Judging from my own experience, I believe the brain provides many things that we don't consider important enough and regard as just distractions. But to understand what I mean, you have to be aware of the highest frequency we humans can think or experience separate thoughts. Do you know what that frequency is?
But consider this. Our brains are a lot like the brains of our ancestors before any of these organized religions. Have you ever wondered about what "spiritual" experiences those people had? Do you realize that science has proven that they are the same thing we are? Anyway, how did they survive their times when they didn't have the scientific knowledge we have to guide them in the world they experienced. How did they survive psychologically? What kind of spirituality enabled that survival?
I appreciate the open-mindedness and philosophical insight of this attitude, since the person ur replying to likely won't. Thank you Sam & Carol your replies have been great good faith contributions to this discussion
I spread what I have learned and personally experienced over 69 years. I do not spread stories and teachings of others. We all have a Divine spark and a piece of the puzzle of our existence. Anyone claiming their story is the only true one understands little. Discernment and wisdom come from open hearts, open minds, sincerity, humility and learning to listen and observe. It is not age or even "knowledge" specific.
"I spread what I have learned and personally experienced over 69 years. I do not spread stories and teachings of others."
This is either delusion or deception. You're spreading a new age [old age occultism] reading of Jesus in the Holy Bible which is calling Jesus a liar, He's God, it's impossible for Him to lie because He's the only sinless perfect one.
"We all have a Divine spark and a piece of the puzzle of our existence."
There it is, the lies of satan that "we all have a Divine spark"... the same lie satan beguiled Eve with in the Garden of Eden, that they would be 'as gods'. Quite blasphemous abomination to God/Jesus.
"Anyone claiming their story is the only true one understands little."
Satan really is the master deceiver, and he has clearly done quite a successful work in immensely beguiling you to believe his so subtle slick lies to call our Creator [God/Jesus] a liar. There's a reason why satan is called "the father of lies" by God/Jesus.
"Discernment and wisdom come from open hearts, open minds, sincerity, humility and learning to listen and observe. It is not age or even "knowledge" specific."
There you go again calling God/Jesus a liar. Dear woman, you're in an extremely dangerous spiritual position regarding your eternity when you take your last breath.
That's good to read you're a truth seeker, but if we claim to speak truth on something and in God's/Jesus' eyes it's a lie, is God/Jesus not to be trusted?
As for your "presume to judge." ;
Sigh, smh. People tell me, "Judge not lest ye be judged." I try to remember to tell them "TWIST NOT SCRIPTURE LEST YE BE LIKE SATAN" because they are referring to Matthew 7:1-6 "Do Not Judge" 👈***Yes, one of the most misused, misunderstood, misapplied, mishandled verses in Scripture ALWAYS by the Matthew 7:21-23 MANY who are not truly John 3:1-21 qualified as the authentic austere Scriptural first century Jesus the Christ _[God]_ commanded.***
***The Absolute Absurd Bewildering Astounding Mindboggling Hypocrisy Of Claiming It's Wrong To Judge.***
***FIRST*** you make the internal judgment that judging is wrong.
***SECOND*** you make the internal judgment that someone is judging.
***THIRD*** you make the internal judgment they shouldn't be judging.
***FOURTH*** you open your mouth and judge them for judging.
The true Scriptural austere Jesus the Christ taught that hypocrisy is judging someone for doing what you are doing _[Matthew 7:1-6 etc]._ How is judging someone for judging not the pinnacle of hypocrisy? God/Jesus commands us to judge RIGHTEOUS judgment! Does the true austere first century Jesus command His true John 3:1-21 remnant disciples to judge? YES!! Yes, Jesus commands us _[born again believers/John 3:1-21 qualified which ye are not obviously]_ to judge according His Word, the Word of God!
Philippians 1:9 _[KJV]_ : "And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment."
John 7:24 [_KJV]_ : "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment."
1 Corinthians 6:2-3, 5 _[KJV]_ : "Do ye not know that the saints [born again believers] shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?" ...... I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?
1 Corinthians 2:15 _[KJV]_ : "But he that is spiritual [born again] judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man _[natural man/unsaved]._"
God/Jesus teaches that true John 3:1-21 qualified believer that if you truly love Him above all, you hate what He hates, and love what He loves. They also know the authentic austere Scriptural Jesus the Christ _[God]_ teaches, yes, He is the supreme judge but also He teaches all throughout the Scriptures to judge righteously. False doctrine is due to not doing proper Acts 17 Berean exegesis due to not truly being John 3:1-21 qualified thus being deceived by Matthew 24:11 qualified ones, which i, as one who is a male pushing almost half a century old, and has been born again for many years now, am commanded by the only true Master _[God/Jesus]_ to admonish and exhort and _[rebuke if need be]_ you come out of these partly non-Scriptural doctrines i pointed out so that you may truly be right with the true Lord.
At least you worthily embody who the Christ Jesus the True the Righteous declares at enmity with Him.
The question of religion is not infrequently broached with socialists. A variety of cases are made ranging from the absolutely irrefutable word of God, as recorded in the bible (or sacred scripture of choice), to attempts to reconcile religious faith with Marxism. Liberation theology is perhaps the most systematic attempt at this latter approach on a society-wide basis. However, this turns out to be a melding of Roman Catholicism and ‘Leninist socialism’ of the Cuban variety in Latin America where this theology was concocted.
Sympathy with the poor rather than being the spiritual mask of the rich is laudable, but does nothing to address the fundamental cause of that poverty, the material relations of wealth production and distribution. Not only is the pursuit of profit not sinful in capitalism, it is a basic requirement any lachrymose response by the Church cannot challenge.
Religion is not to be abolished in the name of socialism. That can be left in the past with Stalin and Enver Hoxha. Better to progress the case for the working class to pursue actual socialism which requires collective conscious action by the class on its own behalf. This does not entail any compromise with religion, not even if it attempts to accommodate itself to the socialist cause.
‘Christian Socialism is but the holy water with which the priest consecrates the heart-burnings of the aristocrat’ (Communist Manifesto).
The point is not to negate religion but to transcend it through socialism harnessing the material resources available to humanity and employ them democratically for the commonweal, if not for heaven on earth, then as close as mankind can get to it.
('Atheism: Transcending Superstition', World Socialism 15 April 2020)
Very good article. Indeed this is what happened. The Americans pushed on & backed by Zionist stolen wealth, using bribery & blackmail. Reagan was a dirty old man and a puppet. Ask Cathy O'brien who suffered under mk ultra for years. (Good old Uncle Ronnie) yeah right... Christianity has been ripped apart and manipulated for decades and nobody questions it. They just follow with blind failing & sad ignorance Apocryphal books stolen from the true words of God and so many lies to suit their agendas. They will never bury or deny fully and many are finally waking up 👏🏻❤️🙏🏻
As a Christian I hate other people claiming Christianity while believing false prophets— Christian nationalism for one.
A true Christian walks the walk of Christ. Accept everyone regardless of race, religion, sexuality... Help those in need, standup for what’s right. Share your wealth. Those were the dominate traits of Christ.
The path of Christ is walked by people of all religions just calling it something else.
Jesus threatened people with supernatural torture if they didnt obey what he claimed his father wanted, which was absolute submission. Jesus is one of the most malicious characters ever invented.
Matthew 24:11.
Excellent review of what we here, in Chile, experienced during the 80s and 80s, dear Guy. I was born and grew up during Pinochet's dictatorship. I remember well all the priests and nuns and communities that werer prosecuted, trapped and killed then. How they were attacked for their christian beliefs and for keeping the teachings of Jesus at the side of poor people, workers, normal laboring families. And the elites happily helped this happen, as they do today. Tomorrow, a fascist, ultra right pseudo nazi government built on lies, hate, racism and fake news is starting in Chile with Jose Kast. May God help us all. Especially those who were targeted during Pinochet's regime. Or the LGBTQI+ community, or pro Palestinian, Mapuche and environmental activists. And working class people. And women.
I lived in Chile from 1980-84 and married a Chilean professor and participated in protests against Pinochet. The hierarchy in the Church mostly colluded with the military. I think Liberation Theology is the best thing to reemerge from Christianity. Thank you for this well written article and graphics, Guy. May evil fail and goodness prevail always everywhere!
Those were hard years for us, Carol. And yes, the church hierarchy colluded with the military, as thaley continue doing with the fascist elites nowadays. It is (and was) horrifying, disgusting and sad. Luberation Theology is what remained nearest to the Gospels and teachi gs of Christ. It is revolting how the ruling classes use religion as a means to maintain the people oppressed and manageable, silencing their right and will to resist and oppose injustice.
Claudia, with due respect, I don't think your argument applies in this time of Trump, when his MAGA followers believe the same thing you believe, that Trump is fighting the rich and powerful in the form of the Deep State. To them, Trump is doing the work of Jesus. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Trump IS the rich and powerful, and must be fought agains with all the might and power you US citizens can muster. I pity those MAGA followers for letting themselves be so misled by pathological manipulators and liars.
Maybe you misunderstood me, Sam. I deeply regret how "religious" leaders are manipulating people into supporting the convicted criminal that disgraces your nation as acting POTUS. Presenting him to the public almost as God himself and the savior of all, using pseudo religious soeech and arguments, twisting religion to a point where the damage done to people who will follow blindly, is unforgivable. In my country, Chile, I was raised in a Catholic home. I saw the chirch and its authorities siding with evil and justufying it. Only those in the Liberation Teology line, stood up for us, and for those who suffered under Pinochet.
Actually it is the evangelical Zionists who support T and his wars for Israel. They think they can bring about Armageddon and the return of Jesus.
It boggles my mind that there are people, adults, with a brain inside their skulls, truly believing this, and working actively for the Armaggeddon. We are back in the Middle Ages, or even further back.
You are a wonderful young person
Thank you, Guy, for this great piece on Christian Liberation! So many have been kept in the dark for so long about the true redemptive and freeing power of Christ's teachings... Kept in the dark by those who oppressed and abused their labor for their own financial gain. Here's hoping more and more are waking up to the fact that Christ's liberating message has been hidden but it's still theirs for the taking.
Trump's MAGA agree with you. Prove me wrong.
Trump's maga have never heard of Liberation Theology. They would call it communism and kill it like the fascists did before.
I take the Armageddon fascists/cultists to task : https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/p/jesus-is-comingto-kick-genocidal
Truth.
No it's not, it's what the authentic austere Jesus the Christ of the Bible calls heresy.
No, YOU call it heresy because it doesn't align with YOUR interpretation of the bible
Hello people—Guy is correct about Liberation Theology and what those teachings stood for— remember his Jesus’s exact words from “sermon on the mount.” Those were his precise words and teachings. If you know him in the spirit world, as many people do currently, he’s no different and preaches love for all the people. Taking care of the people was his mission, and no amount of biblical exegesis can explain it differently. He was a great prophet and is in the spirit world a liberation warrior still to this day teaching peace, love, generosity, courage, integrity, forgiveness, and compassion for others always. Hegeseth will be remembered by God in his own way, and it’s not up for us to judge others, as there is always “justice.” Killing others is very much against all spiritual law—period. Hegeseth will more than likely spend some time in his next Iives learning a better way. He may lose family member after family member through war. As there is always justice. It isn’t for us to say really, but all people who break spiritual law learn eventually. We should all remember to save ourselves hard times and wasted efforts to follow that spiritual law, rather than break it. Follow Jesus’s golden path of those virtues, and you shall be rewarded. Love thy neighbor.
When you pray to Jesus, you pray to a fellow human. That's fact. When you pray to God or Allah, you pray to God. That's also fact. People believe whatever they want, even though some beliefs are not supported by fact and some beliefs contradict fact. This is why you and MAGA believe the same thing.
Hello how do you know who I pray to? Jesus was and is an enlightened being, and there are many more. I am a person of light. I am definitely not MAGA. All people pray to God —ultimately— if they pray at all. These are simply the names people that refer to the most. But yes Islamic believers also pray to God— Allah the enlightened one— they also accept Jesus as a prophet. . Human beings made that separation— not God. God doesn’t care what religion or spirituality one belongs to. God does not care who we pray to as long as we respect his wishes and laws of spiritual beingness. That’s all.
My use of the term "you" is generic use, not "you" personally, and the context of my comment proves it.
Such a thoughtful, insightful and intelligent article- thank you Guy for teaching me about Christian Liberation
Your ignorance of history is profound.
Christianity didn’t get “captured” by empire centuries later. The empire embraced it and made it the official religion after Constantine the Great legalized it with the Edict of Milan, and later Theodosius I made it the state religion of the Roman Empire.
From that moment the church absorbed Roman hierarchy, authority, and imperial logic. Bishops mirrored imperial administrators, doctrine was enforced with state power, and dissent became heresy backed by law.
Christianity is the empire rebranded. It is no coincidence its symbolic seat of power sits in Rome. Christianity didn’t just get used by empire. It fused with it. The Christianity we know it, flourished inside Roman imperialism. Christianity is imperialism.
I think that was his point. Christianity is a good thing that was coopted. When people tried to go back to the real Christianity, they were bulldozed and silenced. Islam cannot be corrupted which is why it is so demonized. It doesn't just say what is wrong, it gives ways to fix it. Christianity came to correct the changes made by man in Judaism. Islam came to correct the changes made by man in Christianity. God said He will protect the Quran. There have been no changes to it since it came down.
Its not about any religion , the Romans would have weaponized Islam , Buddhism and any other religion if it provided a means to maintain power over the populous. Religions, like most everything that man creates, no matter the noble intent, someone will find a way to turn it into a weapon.
Good summary. Too bad it falls on too many deaf ears. Your comments about Christianity of course apply even to Trump's MAGA supporters, even though they agree with you using the same Biblical quotes. And in my view, they aren't even Christians, at least by how Jesus is quoted in the Scriptures. What a mess.
There is a lot of profound wisdom in religious texts, but there also a lot cruelty in these old texts. You don't have to belong to any faith, nor believe in Jesus to have compassion and empathy for others.
“The United States Supreme Court has ruled that Native Americans lost their land because Christians discovered it first.”
That’s not hyperbole. It’s essentially the logic of Johnson v. M’Intosh (1823).
In that decision, Chief Justice John Marshall ruled that European discovery gave the United States ultimate title to the land, reducing Indigenous nations to a right of occupancy rather than ownership.
Marshall didn’t invent the idea. He pulled it from the Doctrine of Discovery — a legal framework rooted in 15th-century papal bulls like Inter Caetera (1493), which authorized Christian monarchs to claim lands inhabited by non-Christians.
That doctrine was absorbed directly into U.S. law through what’s known as the Marshall Trilogy:
• Johnson v. M’Intosh (1823) — discovery gives the U.S. ultimate title
• Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831) — tribes labeled “domestic dependent nations”
• Worcester v. Georgia (1832) — tribes recognized as political communities but within the federal framework created by discovery
Those rulings still underpin federal Indian law today.
Which reveals the mechanism most people never think about.
Modern property systems across the Americas depend on the legitimacy of the original seizure.
If the doctrine that justified conquest collapses, the legal foundation of land ownership across half a continent starts to unravel.
So the doctrine survives not because it’s morally defensible.
It survives because the system requires it to.
“Christians”. Show that quote or you are an atheist New World Order shill. Only satanists go out of their way to inject “Christian” into things simply so they can then shit on them.
You exposed yourself so readily… Clearly they trained you better than that.
You caught me. I’m actually a City of London Manchurian candidate.
How did you figure it out?
Did CBS News report it?
Why yes, they did.
Christopher, thanks, I wasn't aware of this. Here's a synopsis of the basics:
Johnson v. M'Intosh, 21 U.S. 543 (1823), is a landmark Supreme Court case establishing that Native American tribes did not hold full title to their land, but only a "right of occupancy." Consequently, private citizens could not purchase land directly from tribes; only the federal government could acquire it, based on the "discovery doctrine".
In 1773 and 1775, Thomas Johnson purchased land from the Illinois and Piankeshaw nations. Later, the U.S. government sold that same land to William M'Intosh. Johnson's heirs sued to claim the land, arguing their title was superior.
Ruling: Chief Justice John Marshall, writing for a unanimous Court, ruled that only the federal government held valid title to the land. The ruling upheld that European discovery (and subsequent American sovereignty) gave the U.S. government the exclusive right to extinguish Native American title, whether by treaty or conquest.
Jesus worshiped Yahweh, the character in the Torah who commands a genocide of Midianites and the enslavement of female virgins as war booty. The central theme of the gospels is that Yahweh is so angry at humanity that if his supposed innocent "son" Jesus isnt tortured and executed for the sins of other people that he will torture everyone. And the only way out of being tortured is believing this story isn't psychotic and it is true. Jesus preached that if people didn't believe him and obey him that they would be tortured; and promised people that if they did obey him they would be rewarded. He *commanded* people (because he thought he was rightful king of the earth) to give to the poor while simultaneously sanctifying slavery. It is a story fit for sycophants.
The bible will always cultivate people like Hegseth. It is filled with delusion and extraordinary cruelty. Christianity has enslaved way more people than it has ever liberated, and it will always be like that. Suggesting Christianity is about liberation is like suggesting Nazism is about anti-racism.
No, we interpret religion as a moral foundation for the purpose of living modern meaningful life. You are missing way too much education on Christianity to have any valuable commentary if u think Christians value the Old Testament equally or more than the New Testament. Try at least learning the simple story of the gospel and see if Jesus represents the right wing government oppressors in Roman Caesar or right wing religious oppressors in the Pharisees, or if he represents the poor & working class.
Christianity also cultivates people like Gustavo Gutierrez, MLK, Tommy Douglas (father of Canadian healthcare system), etc etc. White American settler colonialism using Christianity as a tool, the way Zionism uses Judaism as a tool, cultivates people like Hegseth
Who is "we"? My understanding of particular religions, such as Christianity, is based on reason and evidence.
The Old Testament is foundational to the New Testament. Without understanding it, a person cannot develop an empirically accurate understanding of the New Testament.
The "simple story of the gospel" is what I already outlined about the character Yahweh's demand for an innocent blood sacrifice to quench his psychotic wrath.
Jesus doesn't "represent" the "right" or the "poor and working class." You are erroneously projecting modern political ideology into a first century apocalyptic cult.
For every 1 "MLK" there are 1000 "Hegseths" that Christianity births. Not even close to worth it. "liberation theology" is functionally the attempt by socialists to use Christianity as a propaganda tool for political ideology that isn't strongly supported by the Bible.
ZIonism doesn't use Judaism as a tool, Judaism is using Zionism as a tool. Read Rabbi Kook's eulogy on Herlz. Judaism is foundationally a pseudo racial nationalistic genocidal slaver cult. The settlers terrorizing the West Bank are a lot more like Moses than the activists in Jewish Voice for Peace who are so intent on trying to protect the reputation of Judaism. Interpreting Judaism as a "social justice" religion is like interpreting Nazism as a "social justice" ideology. It's erroneous and unethical. Some religions deserve to be repudiated, and reformation is futile and misguided.
Christianity is ultimately an obstacle to the "liberation" of "the poor" and "working class." No religion that exults slavery will ever truly "liberate" "humanity."
Jax, aren't you proposing that we take from the Scriptures only what your interpretation says and that we disregard much of the text that comprises these documents?
Longer reply on your restack, but basically: Yea, pretty much, this is the heart of theology, discerning how to follow & apply scripture to modern life, which often involves prioritizing some aspects over others. Not much different from philosophy discussions & debates, we argue for the interpretation we think is best.
With all due honour young Guy Christensen [your last name means "Son of the Christ", a title meaning one who follows the true 1st century austere Bible Jesus the Christ in the John 3:1-21 way which He calls ALL mankind too], i seek not to offend you but rather to show you where you are in grave error. I'm past a half-century old, i'm Italian, first generation in Canada and i was a Catholic for about 30 years of my before i had a true John 3:1:21/Damascus road conversion about 20 years ago to become a true 1st century defined born again disciples of the authentic austere 1st century Jesus the Christ of the Scriptures.
It really saddens me how many spiritually fatally believe they can teach others how to comprehend the Scriptures, when they themselves are not truly saved yet, and when they are in rebellion to Jesus in His eyes by spreading quite dangerous heresies such as "Liberation Theology" and when if they read the New Testament in the correct 1st century John 3:1-21 / Acts 17 Berean exegesis, they would know that you have to be at minimum forty years old to teach others the New Testament as Jesus taught because it takes time to correctly comprehend His words in their historical context spiritually and how it applies to today. So as the true the Christ Jesus commands us elder disciples/ministers of the one and only true Gospel, i told you that to tell you all this;
When one studies the Scriptures correctly [exegesis] as i outline above, they **will** learn that the Christ Jesus was NOT a Socialist. Why? **because what He taught was voluntary acts of charity - to give with a cheerful hear [2Corinthian 9:7 and other parallel verse] - *rather than government-enforced redistribution of wealth.* His teachings emphasised one's own responsibility and the importance of individual choice in helping others, rather than a political or economic system.
Further and again;
According to correct 1st century John 3:1-21 qualified / Acts 17 Berean exegesis [**NOT eisegesis which you have perilously done or have dangerously adopted**], Liberation theology is dangerous heresy. Jesus warned many times how in our day, there would be a GREAT MYRIAD of false prophets and foul shepherds teaching all manner of innumerable doctrines of devil and damnable heresies - spiritual poison, and you are spreading one of them. Liberation theology arose in the 1960s by Latin Catholics of South America [thus Socialist areas]. Thus it's quite a dangerous heresy because it stresses social and political liberation **not prime focus on spiritual salvation** and so, the former [Liberation Theology] is in stark oppositional conflict to 1st century Jesus taught John 3:1-21 qualified/Acts 17 Berean exegetical discipleship, Liberation Theology heavily distorts the Gospel [Luke 13:1-5, 24:47, Mark 1:15, John 3:1-21, Galatians 1:7-9 and many parallel verses] by prioritising social justice over one's own sins and salvation.
Here's a link to further comprehend the grave seriousness of spreading such modern day heresies;
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/livinginthelight/2025/09/was-jesus-a-socialist-setting-the-record-straight
I implore you as the true 1st century Jesus the Christ commands - in the brotherly love as HE defines love which He is the only God of - ever so strongly reconsider what you are spreading here, for according to our Creator [God/Jesus], any who have been greatly bamboozled, beguiled, betrayed and bewitched by the father of lies/satan to believe they are approved by Jesus to teach the Scriptures and yet they are not truly John 3:1-21 qualified as is required Jesus teaches, then they are qualified for Matthew 24:11 and all parallel verses in the Old and New Covenant/Testament. I pray you receive this in humility if you truly seek truth no matter the cost, no matter how much it hurts, no matter where it leads, no matter the matter, because **ONLY God/Jesus*** is the eternal, absolute, most sublime, transcendent, omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, omni-iudex, omni-dimensional, omni-omni foundation and fountainhead of Truth, it's one of His names, it's what He is, Truth itself, the source of it. I pray it's His will you see this reply and truly heed what i have been commanded to tell you in His love by Him according to correct study/exegesis reading of the Scriptures.
Selah.
So basically do you or do you not agree that the Gospel is anti-colonial, imperial, elitist, etc?
Cause that is what this is about.
Did you read the link?
It says at the end to ask if our systems fit into His word and that’s what I’ve done with the article, with you, and what Liberation Theology also did in Latin America.
There’s nothing wrong with recognizing the sin of oppressive systems and rallying against them. E.g. Exodus story.
I never said Jesus was a socialist but I believe he’d like it much more than he’d like billionaires, who are surely eternally damned. If you think saying the rich are oppressive and advocating for wealth redistribution makes him a socialist then it’s your words not mine.
He would tell the billionaires to give all their wealth to the poor in order to achieve eternal life. Don’t you agree?
"I never said Jesus was a socialist but I believe he’d like it much more than he’d like billionaires.......He would tell the billionaires to give all their wealth to the poor in order to achieve eternal life. Don’t you agree?"
Sadly, either you did not fully comprehend the article, or are not ready yet to fully comprehend it. I pray you do sooner than later for tomorrow is not promised and it's too late for us to change our minds after we take our last breath and face Him for judgment. Ezekiel 33.
What mental BS you write. Never trust anyone who cannot make an argument directly and concisely And who uses a Bible verse like that carried some authority And asks you to read some other link.
Many many men wrote the Bible and even more men decided which writings would be included in the Bible. Most of the Bible is not worth reading. I have read it. Most of the words attributed to Jesus are revolutionary and beautiful and true. Patriarchal religions in general are violent, hierarchical and emphasize conformity. It is not about worship, but about love.
No offence Carol, you're replies are much more feelings based than fact based, thus fully qualified for verses like Proverbs 1:7, 8:13, 12:15, 14:12, 15:12, 16:18, 17:15-16, 18:13, 28:26, Jeremieh 17:5-9, Matthew 10:40, Luke 10:16, Romans 1:18-32 etc.
No, "socialists" are typically atheists, and Jesus absolutely hated atheists. He felt that everyone who didnt worship and obey his master, the god of slavery and genocide, Yahweh, deserved to be tortured. You should read Numbers. It is important to know who you are praising. He doesnt deserve it.
Sigh.. more quite abhorrently contorted, distorted, twisted, warped, vainglorious dangerous eisegesis of the Holy Bible, not really much exegesis, the former brings self-induced extirpation, the latter true salvation. BTW, "Yahweh" is not the God of the Old Testament, see this;
www.yahwehism.com
I think it is immoral to worship a character who approves the enslavement of female virgins as war booty. See Numbers 31. No "eisegesis."
Jesus did not hate anyone. His essential message to love everyone made him a teacher worth listening to.
Anyone who fantasizes about supernatural torture of people who don't do what they want hates people and absolutely doesn't "love everyone." The message to "love everyone" is irrational nonsense and in Jesus' case, his message to obey a psychopathic character, Yahweh, makes him a "teacher" deserving rebuke.
https://www.wetheblacksheep.com/p/a-loving-defense-of-hate
Sigh.. you people clearly don't even read the Old and New Testament, just snippets and then intellectually factually believe you're correct. Smh... Jesus hates evil and the evil-doer. Study the Scriptures in the correct 1st century John 3:1-21/Acts 17 Berean way [exegesis] He taught, not in an eisegesis way which you are clearly demonstrating which is great peril to call God/Jesus a liar since that is what the father of lies/satan teaches his spiritual offspring.
You sir are simply, & way too confidently, wrong. But that's ok different interpretations are not the end of the world, we don't scream about heresy for slight theological differences, we're civilized modern ppl not medieval peasants right?
The gospel is not about pure individual responsibility, Jesus was not an enlightenment philosopher pushing liberal individualism, nor a stoic philosopher focused on personal self control, he was a guardian of the poor and dispossessed here to reveal the character of God and how to see God in all His children. How we treat our poor, weak, ill, & tribalist "enemies", is how we truly view Jesus. Write all u want with bible references it doesn't mean anything if you aren't living Jesus' message. Love each other as he loved us, give away our earthly belongings, share amongst each other, washing feet, humbling ourselves, none of that is individualist or capitalist. Jesus would actually be a communist not a socialist because he would be for smaller decentralized communities that share and participate in communal reciprocal work to benefit each other. Socialism is the approach to political government that seeks to convert current capitalist states towards the goal of communism, in other words for us to live as monastic monks did, in sustainable loving community. The early anabaptists were a form of pre-communism identified by Engels.
The message of Jesus will spread more when more people realize his message is radical love to the point you love your enemy and pro-social community, not harsh individualist every man for himself capitalism as we have today. Right wing Christianity is doing more to kill the religion than any atheists or anti-Christian folks ever could.
Jax, great comment. Thanks. I only warn not to invoke the Capitalist/Socialist discussion as an either/or, which is silly and childish. A successful society must incorporate both sides of the dualism, using wisely-devised institutions. This dualism, is a fundamental feature of our brains, a result of biological evolution, which selected for survival of the species, not for understanding reality. Survival is not the understanding of reality.
Try reading the link i supplied before replying. Proverbs 18:13, Matthew 7:1-6.
Jesus threatened people with supernatural torture if they didnt obey the god he believed in Yahweh. He told his "tribalist enemies" that they were going to burn in a fire. Jesus is one of the most egomaniacal malicious characters in literature. He didn't "love" everyone. No one can. No one should. "Loving" your enemy, in any substantial way, is often foolish and immoral.
Oh, and feel free to give me your stuff and wash my feet. Jesus would not have been a communist. He thought he was a king. Although, admittedly, I imagine deep down inside, most communists dream to be kings.
Clearly not engaging in the discussion in good faith, what's the point of commenting? You think ur doin something or convincing anyone of anything? Besides that, almost sound like ur arguing in favour of sociopathy lol. Sorry you proudly identify with those Jesus condemned I guess? Most don't, most recognize instinctively that selflessness is morally better than selfishness. Regardless of its practicality. Ofc selfless ppl can be taken advantage of by selfish ppl, and this is a good point of theological discussion, on pacifism in the face of evil, where I am more sympathetic to self defense & defense of others/vulnerable. But loving enemies creates a chance to convert those enemies to friends, there's a reciprocal attitude where sometimes to end the conflict you need to be the one to put down ur weapons first, and the other usually follows ((Btw Jesus didn't threaten anyone he was just stating facts of the religious view according to existing scripture at the time & then synthesized thru his fulfillment of OT prophecies))
Thank you for making it quickly easy to discern you're who the true austere Jesus the Christ referred to in Proverbs 1:7 [the latter part], 8:13, 12:15, 14:12, 16:18, 17:15-16, 18:13, 28:26, Jeremieh 17:5-9, Matthew 7:1-6, 13, 21-23, 13:14-15, 15:7-9, 19:16-19, 24:11, Rev 3:15-16, 21:8, 22:15 plus all parallel verses. An abomination is the WORST thing anyone or anything can become to the true Jesus, it means one is a heartbeat away from the Lake of Fire. I pray you have a true road to Damascus/John 3:1-21/Luke 13:1-5, 24:47, Mark 1:15 etc conversion before it's too late, because tomorrow is not promised, and it's too late to change your mind after you die and end up in the Lake of Fire eternally.
I have been on a spiritual path most of my 69 years and have experienced many profound and miraculous events. Comprehending any religious or spiritual writings is not the point. Some are inspired, most are not. It is about who we evolve into and become. It is about inner peace and love and authenticity and integrity and equality. Humans can create hell or heaven on earth. The prayer by Jesus: "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." shows us the way. The will is love and goodness. The Totality, Consciousness, God/Goddess or whatever you call it loves all creation.
Carol, thank you for your words of wisdom, and I'm impressed at your young age. I'm discovering some of these now in my 80th year and wondering why it took so long.
People should make the effort to watch the quite well researched work based on correct 1st century John 3:1-21 qualified/Acts 17 Berean exegesis by the late Caryl Matrisciana [she was a Jesus follower, she had such a heart for God/Jesus] and you will learn, hopefully, why you're spreading old age occultism masquerading as new age systems of belief which is inherently doctrines of devils.
My father was a Presbyterian minister and a thinker and a man of integrity. I spent a lot of time in church and studied the Bible and other religions. He became a social activist because of Jesus. The Divine is Love. Hell is a human creation. We are currently body, mind and spirit. The body will pass away. The Divine is not a humanoid. It is omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient, everything. We are all part of that. The only thing that separates people from the Divine is their mind.
"My father was a Presbyterian minister and a thinker and a man of integrity."
That is honourable, but where does Jesus teach to be a Presbyterian or any of the 1000s of denominations and sects that came from Vatican?
Obviously he does not. They did not exist at his time. I do not label myself as Presbyterian or anything.
Well according to Jesus, you're a mystic.
Discepolo, with due respect, you seem to be lost in your own head, a classic nerd. But maybe this is what you aspire to, though not with that label. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think you'll ever "get it." Maybe next lifetime, if there is one.
"Discepolo, with due respect, you seem to be lost in your own head, a classic nerd. But maybe this is what you aspire to, though not with that label. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think you'll ever "get it." Maybe next lifetime, if there is one."
Are you a Materialist?
I'm everything, but not in the same moment. If you want to know what I experience in moments, but only considering the topic at hand, I'm a Christian, Islamist, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, or other things that are harder to define in that they are the result of my own creativity. You might think of the latter as a "One-ist," or "Universer," or "Everything and All," etc. You get the idea. Would you call that a "materialist"?
Don't you have such moments at all? I'm sure Carol does. And I mean also those moments that are fleeting and discouraged. I try to focus on them an prolong their moment. Judging from my own experience, I believe the brain provides many things that we don't consider important enough and regard as just distractions. But to understand what I mean, you have to be aware of the highest frequency we humans can think or experience separate thoughts. Do you know what that frequency is?
But consider this. Our brains are a lot like the brains of our ancestors before any of these organized religions. Have you ever wondered about what "spiritual" experiences those people had? Do you realize that science has proven that they are the same thing we are? Anyway, how did they survive their times when they didn't have the scientific knowledge we have to guide them in the world they experienced. How did they survive psychologically? What kind of spirituality enabled that survival?
That's enough for now, but thanks for asking.
I appreciate the open-mindedness and philosophical insight of this attitude, since the person ur replying to likely won't. Thank you Sam & Carol your replies have been great good faith contributions to this discussion
I spread what I have learned and personally experienced over 69 years. I do not spread stories and teachings of others. We all have a Divine spark and a piece of the puzzle of our existence. Anyone claiming their story is the only true one understands little. Discernment and wisdom come from open hearts, open minds, sincerity, humility and learning to listen and observe. It is not age or even "knowledge" specific.
Carol, thanks again for more vignettes of wisdom.
If Carol was providing true wisdom, she wouldn't be calling God/Jesus a liar consistently.
Thanks for more explanations of your beliefs.
"I spread what I have learned and personally experienced over 69 years. I do not spread stories and teachings of others."
This is either delusion or deception. You're spreading a new age [old age occultism] reading of Jesus in the Holy Bible which is calling Jesus a liar, He's God, it's impossible for Him to lie because He's the only sinless perfect one.
"We all have a Divine spark and a piece of the puzzle of our existence."
There it is, the lies of satan that "we all have a Divine spark"... the same lie satan beguiled Eve with in the Garden of Eden, that they would be 'as gods'. Quite blasphemous abomination to God/Jesus.
"Anyone claiming their story is the only true one understands little."
Satan really is the master deceiver, and he has clearly done quite a successful work in immensely beguiling you to believe his so subtle slick lies to call our Creator [God/Jesus] a liar. There's a reason why satan is called "the father of lies" by God/Jesus.
"Discernment and wisdom come from open hearts, open minds, sincerity, humility and learning to listen and observe. It is not age or even "knowledge" specific."
There you go again calling God/Jesus a liar. Dear woman, you're in an extremely dangerous spiritual position regarding your eternity when you take your last breath.
I am a truth seeker and truth speaker. You understand so little when you presume to judge.
That's good to read you're a truth seeker, but if we claim to speak truth on something and in God's/Jesus' eyes it's a lie, is God/Jesus not to be trusted?
As for your "presume to judge." ;
Sigh, smh. People tell me, "Judge not lest ye be judged." I try to remember to tell them "TWIST NOT SCRIPTURE LEST YE BE LIKE SATAN" because they are referring to Matthew 7:1-6 "Do Not Judge" 👈***Yes, one of the most misused, misunderstood, misapplied, mishandled verses in Scripture ALWAYS by the Matthew 7:21-23 MANY who are not truly John 3:1-21 qualified as the authentic austere Scriptural first century Jesus the Christ _[God]_ commanded.***
***The Absolute Absurd Bewildering Astounding Mindboggling Hypocrisy Of Claiming It's Wrong To Judge.***
***FIRST*** you make the internal judgment that judging is wrong.
***SECOND*** you make the internal judgment that someone is judging.
***THIRD*** you make the internal judgment they shouldn't be judging.
***FOURTH*** you open your mouth and judge them for judging.
The true Scriptural austere Jesus the Christ taught that hypocrisy is judging someone for doing what you are doing _[Matthew 7:1-6 etc]._ How is judging someone for judging not the pinnacle of hypocrisy? God/Jesus commands us to judge RIGHTEOUS judgment! Does the true austere first century Jesus command His true John 3:1-21 remnant disciples to judge? YES!! Yes, Jesus commands us _[born again believers/John 3:1-21 qualified which ye are not obviously]_ to judge according His Word, the Word of God!
Philippians 1:9 _[KJV]_ : "And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment."
John 7:24 [_KJV]_ : "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment."
1 Corinthians 6:2-3, 5 _[KJV]_ : "Do ye not know that the saints [born again believers] shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?" ...... I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?
1 Corinthians 2:15 _[KJV]_ : "But he that is spiritual [born again] judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man _[natural man/unsaved]._"
God/Jesus teaches that true John 3:1-21 qualified believer that if you truly love Him above all, you hate what He hates, and love what He loves. They also know the authentic austere Scriptural Jesus the Christ _[God]_ teaches, yes, He is the supreme judge but also He teaches all throughout the Scriptures to judge righteously. False doctrine is due to not doing proper Acts 17 Berean exegesis due to not truly being John 3:1-21 qualified thus being deceived by Matthew 24:11 qualified ones, which i, as one who is a male pushing almost half a century old, and has been born again for many years now, am commanded by the only true Master _[God/Jesus]_ to admonish and exhort and _[rebuke if need be]_ you come out of these partly non-Scriptural doctrines i pointed out so that you may truly be right with the true Lord.
At least you worthily embody who the Christ Jesus the True the Righteous declares at enmity with Him.
The question of religion is not infrequently broached with socialists. A variety of cases are made ranging from the absolutely irrefutable word of God, as recorded in the bible (or sacred scripture of choice), to attempts to reconcile religious faith with Marxism. Liberation theology is perhaps the most systematic attempt at this latter approach on a society-wide basis. However, this turns out to be a melding of Roman Catholicism and ‘Leninist socialism’ of the Cuban variety in Latin America where this theology was concocted.
Sympathy with the poor rather than being the spiritual mask of the rich is laudable, but does nothing to address the fundamental cause of that poverty, the material relations of wealth production and distribution. Not only is the pursuit of profit not sinful in capitalism, it is a basic requirement any lachrymose response by the Church cannot challenge.
Religion is not to be abolished in the name of socialism. That can be left in the past with Stalin and Enver Hoxha. Better to progress the case for the working class to pursue actual socialism which requires collective conscious action by the class on its own behalf. This does not entail any compromise with religion, not even if it attempts to accommodate itself to the socialist cause.
‘Christian Socialism is but the holy water with which the priest consecrates the heart-burnings of the aristocrat’ (Communist Manifesto).
The point is not to negate religion but to transcend it through socialism harnessing the material resources available to humanity and employ them democratically for the commonweal, if not for heaven on earth, then as close as mankind can get to it.
('Atheism: Transcending Superstition', World Socialism 15 April 2020)
Very good article. Indeed this is what happened. The Americans pushed on & backed by Zionist stolen wealth, using bribery & blackmail. Reagan was a dirty old man and a puppet. Ask Cathy O'brien who suffered under mk ultra for years. (Good old Uncle Ronnie) yeah right... Christianity has been ripped apart and manipulated for decades and nobody questions it. They just follow with blind failing & sad ignorance Apocryphal books stolen from the true words of God and so many lies to suit their agendas. They will never bury or deny fully and many are finally waking up 👏🏻❤️🙏🏻
That's why they added the Old testament to the canon. perfect for genocidal colonizers.
I will always view the Polish Pope as a traitor to the very Christianity he professed when he denounced the Liberation
Theology movement in Latin America upon his visit to the continent!!
Sources?